The future home of the San Francisco 49ers continues to take shape in Santa Clara. The stadium project was supposed to receive $40 million in redevelopment agency funds, but it had only been paid $10 million when redevelopment agencies were abolished last year. (Photo: Chelsea Janes/ Peninsula Press)

Nearly a year after the state Supreme Court upheld a law abolishing redevelopment agencies, California cities are still adjusting to the evaporation of a revenue stream that had flowed steadily for decades. Many have begun to slash budgets in frustrated resignation, but a few, like Santa Clara, intend to keep on fighting.

Mayor Jamie Matthews and the Santa Clara City Council sent a letter to constituents late last month warning that “very soon, the State of California will likely issue a report demanding that [the city] transfer more than $300 million.” The letter describes the potential annual loss as equal to what it takes to run the police department for half a year, or the city’s library system for a full year.

It asks residents to sign on, literally, in support of unspecified future steps to try to retain the money. Continue Reading >>